(2019-01-21). Germany bans Iran's Mahan Air over 'security concerns'. aljazeera.com Mahan Air is on US sanctions list and Washington has long urged allies to ban it from their territory.
(2019-01-21). US Threatens to Sanction Lebanon if They Participate in Rebuilding Syria. globalresearch.ca The U.S. State Department allegedly sent a cable to the Lebanese Embassy in Washington that warned them against inviting Syria to the Arab Economic Summit in Beirut that is scheduled to take place this week, Al-Akhbar reported on Wednesday. | According…
(2019-01-21). The Quest for Peace and Justice. MLK's Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech. globalresearch.ca It is impossible to begin this lecture without again expressing my deep appreciation to the Nobel Committee of the Norwegian Parliament for bestowing upon me and the civil rights movement in the United States such a great honor. Occasionally in …
(2019-01-21). Prominent Saudi scholar Ahmed al-Amari dies in prison: Activists. aljazeera.com Saudi activists allege the 69-year-old scholar died as a result of poor prison conditions and possible torture.
(2019-01-21). MLK Day Special: Rediscovered 1964 King Speech on Civil Rights, Segregation & Apartheid South Africa. democracynow.org 
As the nation marks 90 years since the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we air a rediscovered speech he delivered on December 7, 1964, days before he received the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. In a major address in London, King spoke about segregation, the fight for civil rights and his support for Nelson Mandela and the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa. The speech was recorded by Saul Bernstein, who was working as the European correspondent for Pacifica Radio. Bernstein's recording was rediscovered by Brian DeShazor, director of the Pacifica Radio Archives.
(2019-01-21). All Hail the Revolutionary King: Martin Luther King and the Black Revolutionary Tradition. counterpunch.org The annual King Day celebrations provide a great opportunity to defend Dr. King's revolutionary legacy against The System's efforts to white wash and degrade his frontal challenge to its crimes. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the great revolutionaries in U.S. and world history. He was a leader of the Civil Rights and More
(2019-01-21). Human Rights Activists Condemn Britain's 'Shameful' War Games with Israeli Air Force. globalresearch.ca The RAF is facing a barrage of criticism after it invited Israel to send its war planes to take part in a training exercise in Britain. | Last night the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) slammed the offer as "shameful" and "deeply …
(2019-01-21). Venezuela says rogue officers arrested, bases under control. aljazeera.com Authorities detain military officers who stole weapons hours after video showed an officer calling for Maduro's removal.
(2019-01-21). Distinguished Iranian/American Journalist Marzieh Hashemi arrested by FBI. globalresearch.ca Distinguished Press TV journalist/anchor's unlawful arrest, detention and mistreatment by the FBI, on the pretext of being a material witness regarding a case her family knows nothing about, gave the US another international black eye. | What happened captured world headlines, …
(2019-01-21). A3 Newsletter: An Invitation from King and Kenyatta, Netherlands photos, and more. indybay.org This issue of our newsletter features an invitation to activists and A3 supporters in the New Orleans are, a spotlight on the work of Canadian filmmaker Ron Harpelle, and photos from Robert King and Albert Woodfox's recent trip to the Netherlands in support of Amnesty International's Write for Rights campaign.
(2019-01-21). Women's March in Fresno 2019. indybay.org Here are a couple of photos and a video I took at the Women's March in Fresno. It was great to see so many people come together in support of women's rights. The rally and march were held near River Park in north Fresno. Participants were cheerful, it was a nice sunny day and I THANK THE ORGANIZERS for putting together such a nice event.
(2019-01-21). Statement on Women's March from Radical Women and Freedom Socialist Party. indybay.org Pro-police and racist forces have denounced the Women's March for sending greetings to exiled Black revolutionary Assata Shakur. Undoubtedly, a mix of forces from the FBI to so-called men's rights advocates are busy trying to prevent a multi-racial, grassroots feminist movement from consolidating and truly taking off.
(2019-01-21). San Mateo: Women's Rally in Solidarity with Women's March. indybay.org It was not a march but a rally on a sunny day in San Mateo County. Many of the participants were women were "of a certain age". One carried a sign that read "Grannies Still Here Fighting to Protect Reproductive Rights Our Generation Won."
(2019-01-21). Shocking Admission by FBI Veteran Shows Why the FBI Shouldn't Exist. theantimedia.com 
(CJ Opinion) — On the 18th of November, 1964, the FBI's appallingly corrupt boss J. Edgar Hoover denounced Martin Luther King Jr. as "the most notorious liar in the country." A few days later, a Hoover deputy named William Sullivan wrote King a letter posing as a disillusioned follower and using powerful, manipulative language to urge the civil rights leader to commit suicide …
(2019-01-21). Maldives: A flicker of hope amidst a turbulent year for human rights. amnesty.org When the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) was proclaimed on 10 December 1948, the world was a dark place. With the brutality of World War II fresh in their minds, members representing the state parties before the United Nations were adamant that human dignity be one of the pillars on which global recognition of human rights would be built in. The preamble to the UDHR unequivocally recognizes that the inherent dignity, equality and inalienability of human rights is "the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world". In 201…
(2019-01-21). Philippines: Peaceful protestors attacked and one murdered. amnesty.org Hundreds of workers from southern Philippines have been camping out in Manila since 27 November 2018 to protest the labour conditions on Japanese-owned Sumitomo Fruit Corporation (Sumifru) plantations. Since declaring a strike on 1 October 2018, the workers have faced multiple attacks, including the killing of a prominent union member and the burning down of the union's office and the houses of some members. A prompt, thorough and impartial investigation by the Philippine authorities into the threats and attacks should be conducted immediately, and the authorities must also guarantee the safety of the protesting…
(2019-01-21). Israel/OPT: Prominent Bedouin Leader Imprisoned by Israel: Sheikh Sayyah Abu Mdeighim al-Turi. amnesty.org On 25 December 2018, 69-year-old human rights defender Sheikh Sayyah Abu Mdeighim al-Turi, started serving a 10-month prison sentence for exercising his rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly. Sheikh Sayyah is the head of al-'Araqib, a Bedouin village in the Negev/Naqab that is unrecognized by the Israeli authorities. He is currently held at Maasiyahu Prison, in the city of Ramle in central Israel. He is a prisoner of conscience and must be released immediately and unconditionally.
(2019-01-21). Israel y los Territorios Palestinos Ocupados: Encarcelado por Israel un destacado líder beduino. amnesty.org El 25 de diciembre de 2018, Sheikh Sayyah Abu Mdeighim al-Turi, defensor de los derechos humanos de 69 años, comenzó a cumplir una condena de 10 meses de prisión que le ha sido impuesta por ejercer su derecho a la libertad de expresión y de reunión pacífica. Es el jefe de Al Araqib, pueblo beduino del Néguev/Naqab que no está reconocido por las autoridades israelíes. Se halla recluido en la prisión de Maasiyahu, situada en la ciudad de Ramle, en el centro de Israel. Es preso de conciencia y debe ser puesto en libertad de inmediato y sin condiciones.
(2019-01-21). Walk The Talk . amnesty.org The new Constitution of Nepal, written in 2015, significantly widened the scope of human rights protections—including through strengthening the guarantee of economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR). Nepal is also a state party to many key human rights treaties including the International Covenant on Civil on Political Rights and the Covenant of Economic Social and Cultural Rights. | When it came to human rights, the citizens in Nepal had two major expectations from the government. The first was ensuring a closure from past human rights violations under the framework of human rights. And the second was pr…
(2019-01-21). Cut Adrift in the Med. amnesty.org …
(2019-01-21). Ecuador: Authorities must seriously address situations of violence, without encouraging xenophobia. amnesty.org In response to recent statements by the government of President Lenin Moreno on the imposition of entry restrictions for Venezuelan people, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas Director of Amnesty International, said: | "President Lenín's government has the responsibility to protect people's rights to seek asylum and international protection, as well as to prevent, investigate and punish acts of violence committed against people within its territory, without discrimination based on their nationality or other factors." | "In the face of serious cases of gender violence and recent femicides, the Ecuadorian authorities hav…
(2019-01-21). Nigeria: Disbandment of FSARS not enough to end police atrocities. amnesty.org Responding to an announcement today by the newly-appointed Inspector General of Nigeria Police who ordered the disbandment of Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) and other special squads, Osai Ojigho Director of Amnesty International Nigeria said: | "The disbandment of the notorious Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) acknowledges years of outcry from Nigerians over human rights violations routinely committed by its members. However, disbandment alone is not enough and must be followed with concrete reforms that will end gross violations by the police altogether. |
(2019-01-21). Russia: First criminal case under "undesirable organizations" law marks a new level of repression. amnesty.org The Russian authorities have for the first time used the repressive "undesirable organizations" law to open a criminal case against human rights defender Anastasia Shevchenko, exposing her to the risk of a six-year prison term, Amnesty International said today. | This morning Anastasia Shevchenko, a Coordinator with the Otkrytaya Rossiya (Open Russia) movement, was charged with "repeated participation in the activities of an undesirable organization." Until now, violations of this law were punished under administrative law. | "In recent years, the Russian authorities have progressively suffocated and criminalized…
(2019-01-21). Sri Lanka: The Year in Rights. amnesty.org Just six weeks ago, Sri Lanka was a different place. The political crisis had not struck, and a critique of the country's human rights situation would focus primarily on delivery of transitional justice commitments, space for civil society, human rights defenders, the media, ongoing torture, the attempt to constitutionalise economic, social and cultural rights and the limited successes on the accountability front against perpetrators of human rights violations.
(2019-01-21). 'Medicare for All and Equal Rights Aren't Trends': Ocasio-Cortez Fires Back After Aaron Sorkin Lectures Young Progressives. commondreams.org Low turnout in some demographics, says New York Democrat, is "not because communities are apathetic, it's because they don't see you fighting for them." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-01-21). Critics to Mike Pence, US Marine Corps, and the CIA: Sorry, Martin Luther King Jr. Does Not Belong to You. commondreams.org The family of Martin Luther King Jr. was among those who pushed back Monday amid the annual sanitization of the civil rights leader's message, as the nation marked what would have been King's 90th birthday—with Vice President Mike Pence drawing particular rebuke for attempting to co-opt his legacy. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-01-21). Libya: Nightmarish Detention for Migrants, Asylum Seekers. hrw.org 
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(2019-01-21). Oscars Documentary Shortlist and Human Rights. hrw.org 
Human rights are featured prominently in this year's Oscar shortlists. Five of the 15 shortlisted films for Best Documentary (out of 166 eligible titles) are part of the 2018 and 2019 Human Rights Watch Film Festival(HRWFF). We're rooting for one to win the Oscar statuette on February 24th, and look forward to the final nominee list to be announced tomorrow. | | Here's a quick guide to the five HRWFF title that made the short list. | Charm City | Working with local journalists and spend…
(2019-01-20). Remembering Martin Luther King Jr., the Organizer. aclu.org What a new generation of activists can learn from America's most celebrated civil rights leader. | Martin Luther King Jr. is rightly celebrated as a transformative political and moral leader who championed racial equality, but he is less often credited as a brilliant strategic and tactical organizer who led cutting edge campaigns to deliver the rights for which he is known. As an organizer, I am struck by the mastery of the organizing craft that infuses King's writing, so on this holiday remembering his legacy, I'll share several of King's lessons that all activists can benefit from today. | King chose campai…
(2019-01-20). Thousands join Women's March in Minnesota. fightbacknews.org St. Paul, MN – Thousands of people rallied at the State Capitol, January 19, as a part of the Women's March. Many joined in the marches today, in Saint Paul and around the country in their ongoing anger and outrage over the Trump administration's continued attacks on women, reproductive rights, as well as the attacks on Muslims, immigrants and refugees. | Chants included, "Hey oh, this president has to go!" Slogans on banners included "No more deportations" and "No more stolen sisters."
(2019-01-20). Thousands join Women's March in DC, ignore right-wing rants. fightbacknews.org Washington, DC — Thousands converged on Washington, DC today, January 19, for the third yearly Women's March. The protest comes amidst the Trump administration's attempts to legitimize misogyny and attacks reproductive rights, trans rights, the rights the survivors of rape on campuses. | The huge turnout came despite a concerted attack by right-wing commentators and Zionists. These reactionaries are distraught because some of the march organizers have demanded justice for the Palestinian Rasmea Odeh, a heroic Palestinian American who faced trumped-up charges and who was later deported. | Large numbers of th…
(2019-01-20). Ecuador: Brutal Femicide Triggers Xenophobic 'Social Cleansing'. telesurenglish.net Local residents in the city of Ibarra in the province of Imbabura, Ecuador attacked a camp of Venezuelan migrants after local media reported a horrific femicide involving the death of a young woman at the hands of her boyfriend, whose nationality was made central in their reports. | RELATED | Ecuador Rocked With Brutal Gang Rape Case | The 22-year-old woman Diana Carolina Ramirez, who was 4 months pregnant, was stabbed to death by her boyfriend after having…
(2019-01-20). Saudi Arabia to Deport 250 Rohingya to Bangladesh: Activists. telesurenglish.net Two-hundred fifty rohingya refugee men are expected to be deported from Saudi Arabia to Bangladesh, an activist group tol Al Jazeera in an exclusive interview Sunday. | RELATED: | India to Deport More Rohingya Refugees to Myanmar | The country is home to 300,000 Rohingya, the majority of whom are legal residents with permit, the Free Rohingya Coalition told the Arabic news corporation. | "These detainees, who are being kept in the Shumaisi detention centre [in Jeddah], have not been treated…
(2019-01-20). West Michigan Women's March builds resistance to Trump. fightbacknews.org Grand Rapids, MI – About 500 people rallied and marched thru Grand Rapids, January 19, to build resistance to Trump during the 2019 Women's March. The women's movement in West Michigan hosted leaders from the immigrant rights, African American freedom, student and labor movements. | Many of the speeches were personal and heartfelt, detailing women's struggles against sexual assault, workplace discrimination, and mistreatment at the hands of ICE, law enforcement and the courts. | "This month we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King, a man who unselfishly shared his dream of equality with us," said Cindy R…
(2019-01-20). Human rights and environmental activists targeted in Victoria Police raids. greenleft.org.au 
The following statement was released on January 19 | *** | Several activists involved in the protests against the International Mining And Resources Conference (IMARC) 2018 last October had their homes raided and searched by Victoria Police on Friday January 18. They were arrested, detained and interrogated and had phones, computers and other belongings seized. | The Latin American Solidarity Network (LASNET), Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance (WAR), Brisbane Aboriginal Sovereign Embassy (BASE), Voices of the 3%, Melbourne Rainforest Action Group (MRAG) and other groups strongly denounce the harassment, surve…
(2019-01-19). Brett Kavanaugh is a Threat to Racial Justice and Voting Rights. zcomm.org In light of the proliferation of laws that pose obstacles to voting, the Supreme Court will have the opportunity to further eviscerate the Voting Rights Act…
(2019-01-19). We have had enough of Trump and the war on women. fightbacknews.org Enough is enough. Trump, his administration, and his backers are waging war on women, and millions of women are making it clear that we are not going to be pushed backwards. From the massive Women's Marches, to the midterm elections, to the constant, everyday resistance, women are standing up against Trump's reactionary agenda. | Trump and his supporters in the Senate want to pack the Supreme Court and roll back reproductive rights, and they have gotten a start by appointing the drunken misogynist Brett Kavanaugh. Accompanying the administrations outrageous policy of placing immigrants in detention, Trump's Justi…
(2019-01-19). Marching to End Child Marriage in Massachusetts. hrw.org 
| | Protesters from Unchained at Last speak in front of the Massachusetts State House in Boston to end child marriage in Massachusetts, May 2017. | © 2017 Unchained at Last/Facebook | Today, I'll join the Women's March in Boston to demand an end to child marriage in Massachusetts. | My two grandmothers were both child brides in Trinidad and Tobago. Their lives illustrate how child marriage robs children — especially girls — of their childhood and rights. | My grandmothers ("Nanny" and "Mama") were forced…
(2019-01-19). Thailand: Insurgents Kill Buddhist Monks. hrw.org 
(New York) — Separatist insurgents in Thailand's southern border provinces killed two Buddhist monks in an unlawful assault on a temple, Human Rights Watch said today. The deliberate attack on civilians and a place of worship is a war crime. | | | Separatist insurgents in Thailand's Narathiwat province attacked Wat Rattanaphab temple on January 18, 2019, and killed two Buddhist monks, including the temple's abbot Phra Khru Prachote Rattanarak, and wounded two others. | © 20…
(2019-01-19). Trump Sanctions Against Venezuela Have Decimated Oil Production. therealnews.com 
The Trump administration is evaluating oil sanctions on Venezuela now. The sanctions that are already in place lead to many deaths and make an economic recovery practically impossible, says CEPR's Mark Weisbrot
(2019-01-18). The Case Against Galveston County's Pretrial Detention System Survives the Government's Challenge. aclu.org A win could set a precedent for prosecutor accountability and right to counsel in bail hearings that could help reform pretrial detention nationally. | If you are accused of a crime and arrested in Galveston County, Texas, you better hope you can afford to pay the preset bail amount to get out of jail. If not, then you will join hundreds of other people who are incarcerated simply because they cannot afford to buy their freedom. In Galveston and communities across the country, there is one pretrial detention system for the poor and an entirely different one for everyone else. | Thirty-six-year-old Aaron Booth fou…
(2019-01-18). A Federal Judge Just Crushed Scott Walker's Lame-Duck Assault on Voting Rights. thenation.com A Federal Judge Just Crushed Scott Walker's Lame-Duck Assault on Voting Rights…
(2019-01-18). These Parties Are Fighting for the Climate, Human Rights, and Immigrants—and They're Winning. thenation.com These Parties Are Fighting for the Climate, Human Rights, and Immigrants—and They're Winning…
(2019-01-18). Detained American Iranian TV Anchor Marzieh Hashemi to Appear in Court. mintpressnews.com Hashemi was held 48 hours before being allowed to contact her family. She has complained of ill-treatment. Authorities forcibly removed her headscarf and took her away in handcuffs.
(2019-01-18). Ya nos cansamos de Trump y de la guerra contra las mujeres. fightbacknews.org °Ya basta! Trump, su administración, y los elites que le respaldan, hacen la guerra contra las mujeres y millones de mujeres declaran que no dejen ningún paso para atrás. Desde las marchas masivas de las mujeres, a las elecciones recientes, a la resistencia constante, diario, mujeres están levantándose en contra de la agenda reaccionaria de Trump. | Trump y sus simpatizantes en el Senado quieren llenar La Corte Suprema y volver al reves los derechos reproductivos. Empezaron por nombrar el misógino borracho Brett Kavanaugh a La Corte Suprema. Además de la política de detener los inmigrantes indefinitivamente…
(2019-01-18). Google Faces Renewed Protests and Criticism Over China Search Project. theintercept.com Google is facing a new campaign of global protests over its plan to launch a censored version of its search engine in China. | On Friday, a coalition of Chinese, Tibetan, Uighur, and human rights groups organized demonstrations outside Google's offices in the U.S., U.K., Canada, India, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Sweden, Switzerland, and Denmark. | Google designed the Chinese search engine, code-named Dragonfly, to blacklist information about human rights, democracy, religion, and peaceful protest, in accordance with strict rules on censorship in China that are enforced by the country's authoritarian Communist Part…
(2019-01-18). Millions of Women Already Live in a Post-Roe America: A Journey Through the Anti-Abortion South. theintercept.com 
Across the United States, millions of women live with a legal right to abortion but without meaningful access to exercise that right.
(2019-01-18). Morocco: Conviction of Hirak El-Rif protest leader Nawal Benaissa upheld. amnesty.org Responding to the news that the appeals court in Al Hoceima has upheld the conviction of Nawal Benaissa, confirming her 10-month suspended prison sentence with a fine, Heba Morayef Amnesty International's Director for the Middle East and North Africa said: | "This verdict is an appalling miscarriage of justice. Nawal Benaissa's only 'crime' was to join peaceful protests to demand the rights of people in the Rif region. The Moroccan authorities are blatantly targeting Nawal Benaissa for her role in the Hirak El-Rif movement and are making an example of her to intimidate others who may wish to speak out. Instead of…
(2019-01-18). Ten things you should know about the latest protests in Sudan. amnesty.org Today marks one month since the ongoing protests in Sudan broke out. Here are ten facts you should know about the protests that have engulfed the eastern African country: | 1. This is the largest wave of protests against the economic policies and allegations of human rights violations by the government of President Omar al-Bashir since he came to power in 1989. | 2. There have been more than 300 protests in 15 out of Sudan's 18 states since the protests began. | 3. The protests were sparked by high school students protest in Atbara city, River Nile state, who were challenging the steep rise in the cost of bread.
(2019-01-18). Madagascar: Next president must tackle historic rights violations. amnesty.org The next president of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, must tackle historic human rights violations, including excessive use of pretrial detention and arbitrary detentions of human rights defenders, Amnesty International said ahead of his inauguration tomorrow. |